blue
The colour of the clear sky or the deep seaThe colour of the clear sky or the deep sea; the colour midway between green and violet in the visible spectrum and one of the primary additive colours.
» He couldn't tell green from blue.
Er konnte Grün nicht von Blau unterscheiden.
Он не различал зелёный и синий.
Он не мог отличить зелёный от синего.
Він не розрізняв зелений і синій кольори.
Meaning
26 senses(countable, uncountable)The colour of the clear sky or the deep sea; the colour midway between green and violet in the visible spectrum and one of the primary additive colours.
(countable, uncountable)Anything coloured blue, especially to distinguish it from similar objects differing only in colour.
I don't like red Smarties. Have you got a blue?
(countable, uncountable)A blue dye or pigment.
blue clothing
(uncountable)Blue clothing.
The boys in blue marched to the pipers.
Blue clothing.
(countable, in the plural, uncountable)A blue uniform. See blues.
(countable, uncountable)A member of a sports team that wears blue colours; (in the plural) a nickname for the team as a whole. See also blues.
Come on, you blues!
(countable, slang, uncountable)An umpire, in reference to the typical dark-blue colour of the umpire's uniform. Sometimes perceived by umpires as derogatory when used by players or coaches while disputing a call.
He was safe! Terrible call, blue!
(countable, uncountable)Sporting colours awarded by a university or other institution for sporting achievement, such as representing one's university, especially and originally at Oxford and Cambridge Universities in England. See also full blue, half blue.
He excelled at rowing and received a blue in the sport at Oxford.
(countable, uncountable)A person who has received such sporting colours.
He was a rugby blue at Cambridge.
(countable, slang, uncountable)A member of law enforcement.
(countable, historical, uncountable)A bluestocking.
(countable, uncountable)The sky, literally or figuratively.
The balloon floated up into the blue.
His request for leave came out of the blue.
the sky as viewed during daylight
Examples
1820 sentencesHe couldn't tell green from blue.
Він не розрізняв зелений і синій кольори.
ruОн не различал зелёный и синий.
deEr konnte Grün nicht von Blau unterscheiden.
She is wearing a blue dress.
Вона у блакитній сукні.
ruНа ней синее платье.
deSie trägt ein blaues Kleid.
I always wear a blue shirt.
Я завжди ношу синю сорочку.
ruЯ всегда хожу в синей рубашке.
Mary is wearing a blue dress.
Мері у блакитному платті.
ruМэри в синем платье.
deMaria trägt ein blaues Kleid.
I don't think Tom likes blue.
Не думаю, що Тому подобається синій колір.
Translations
9 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 1
By meaning 1
Origin
From Middle English blew, blewe, from Anglo-Norman blew, from Middle French bleu, from OldFrom Middle English blew, blewe, from Anglo-Norman blew, from Middle French bleu, from Old French blöe, bleve, blef (“blue”), from Frankish *blāu (“blue”) (perhaps through a Late Latin blāvus, blāvius (“blue”) attested from Isidore of Seville), from Proto-Germanic *blēwaz (“blue, dark blue”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰlēw- (“yellow, blond, grey”).
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
plural: bluesSynonyms
24 synonyms- blue color or pigment; resembling the color of the clear sky in the daytime:blueness
- the sodium salt of amobarbital that is used as a barbiturate; used as a sedative and a hypnotic:amobarbital sodiumblue angelblue devilAmytal
- the sky as viewed during daylight:blue skyblue airwild blue yonder
- used to whiten laundry or hair or give it a bluish tinge:bluingblueing
Word family
12 related wordsLessons for this word
2 lessons- A1Clothes and colours — Because the lesson uses it
- A1Countable and uncountable nouns — Because it can be uncountable
Collocations
12 patterns- wearing a blue
- blue dress
- blue eyes
- a blue dress
- blue shirt
- wearing blue
- wearing blue jeans
- blue jeans
- a blue shirt
- has blue eyes
- blue sweater
- a blue sweater